With its best bullpen arms unavailable, Dodgers blow lead in extra-inning loss

Reporting from PHOENIX —  The schedule compressed upon the Dodgers on Sunday afternoon. On the final day of a 10-game trip, with a crucial series against San Francisco set to start on Monday, Manager Dave Roberts could not use the most talented members of his bullpen in a 10-9 loss in 12 innings to Arizona.

The defeat arose, in part, because Kenley Jansen, Joe Blanton, Pedro Baez and Grant Dayton were all unavailable. All three men were used heavily this weekend, and all three figure to play a sizable role against the Giants. So it was Louis Coleman who gave up a tying homer in the eighth inning, and Ross Stripling who, after pitching four full innings, allowed a walk-off single to outfielder Brandon Drury.

Roberts insisted he did not regret not using his best arms. He saw the bigger picture.

“I wasn’t going to waver,” Roberts said. “I thought it would be unfair to the players.”

Thus the team ended this trip in the same place they were when it began. The Dodgers (84-65) left Los Angeles on Sept. 8 with a five-game lead over San Francisco. The team returned home on Sunday evening with the same advantage, a sizable gap with only 13 games left. The Dodgers play the Giants six times during these next two weeks. But the team could clinch later this week.

In order to do so, the team needs any combination of nine victories of their own and losses by the Giants. Which is why these next three nights carry extra weight for Los Angeles. Clayton Kershaw will face Madison Bumgarner on Monday. “We’ve put ourselves in a good position,” Roberts said.

For so much of the season, the Dodgers have been handcuffed by left-handed pitchers. But on Sunday the team overcame four perfect innings from Arizona southpaw Robbie Ray to complete a six-run comeback. The Diamondbacks pummeled Dodgers rookie Jose De Leon for six runs in 3 2/3 innings. The Dodgers recovered to erase the deficit in the sixth inning. Adrian Gonzalez tied the game with a two-out, three-run double.

The two clubs traded two-run blows in the eighth. Howie Kendrick smacked a double that put the Dodgers ahead for the first time all afternoon. Coleman handed the lead back in the bottom of the inning on a two-run shot by shortstop Chris Owings.

“It was certainly an emotional roller coaster,” Roberts said.

Arizona grabbed the initial lead in the second inning. The Dodgers tend to play effective, if less than sparkling, defense. But their primary weakness is turning double plays. The failure to turn one in this inning contributed to a three-run rally.

De Leon started the fire. He issued a leadoff walk to Drury. Yasiel Puig dove for a catch on the next at-bat, but the baseball slipped out of his glove. With runners at the corners, outfielder Socrates Brito hit a grounder to backup second baseman Charlie Culberson. His throw pulled Corey Seager off the bag as Drury scored.

Instead of two outs, the Dodgers recorded none. Both runners advanced on a two-out bunt by Ray. De Leon threw a 1-and-1 changeup to second baseman Jean Segura that bisected the plate. Segura slashed a two-run single.

The fourth inning was worse. Drury led off with a single. Two pitches later, De Leon left a fastball over the middle to outfielder Mitch Haniger. A two-run homer landed beyond the left-field fence.

De Leon continued to stumble. He gave up a single to catcher Tuffy Gosewisch. The dugout ordered an intentional walk of Segura. De Leon hung a slider to Owings, who raked an RBI double.

“I was making plenty of mistakes,” De Leon said. “And they were making me pay. I’ve got to do a better job with that.”

After four innings on Sunday, the afternoon looked lost. But the Dodgers showed some life in the fifth. Enrique Hernandez became his team’s first player to reach base when he homered.

An inning later, after Bud Norris gave up a run, the Dodgers evicted Ray from the game. Kendrick opened the sixth with a double. Justin Turner followed with an RBI double. Three batters later, rookie Rob Segedin walked. Hernandez rolled an RBI single up the middle.

“It’s a resilient team,” Stripling said.

The lead was down to four. Arizona Manager Chip Hale congratulated Ray for the effort and went to his bullpen. In came Randall Delgado. He promptly walked the only two batters he faced, Joc Pederson and Austin Barnes. The free pass to Barnes drove in a run, and brought Gonzalez into the game.

Earlier in the week, Roberts told Gonzalez to expect a day off on Sunday. Roberts did not want to deviate from his plan, even with his team’s ongoing troubles against lefties. But he felt comfortable using Gonzalez in a high-leverage spot like this.

Hale called left-handed reliever Edwin Escobar. Gonzalez saw four fastballs. He swatted the fourth into the right-field corner and cleared the bases. The game would end in defeat six innings later, but Roberts could appreciate the effort.

“We got beat today,” Roberts said. “But I liked our fight.”

andy.mccullough@latimes.com

Twitter: @McCulloughTimes